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1st LD Writethru: U.S. stocks close mildly higher on Greek elections

Xinhua, January 27, 2015 Adjust font size:

U.S. stocks eked out modest gains after trading in a narrow range Monday, as investors were digesting implications of the Greek national election results on the eurozone economy.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 6.10 points, or 0.03 percent, to 17,678.70. The S&P 500 rose 5.27 points, or 0.26 percent, to 2,057.09. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 13.88 points, or 0.29 percent, to 4,771.76.

Greece's anti-bailout radical left SYRIZA party has won Sunday' s national elections, according to the final official results released by the Interior Ministry Monday, Speaker of Parliament Evangelos Meimarakis announced.

The new government was expected to be under pressure in coming weeks and months from Greece's international lenders, as SYRIZA party leader Alexis Tsipras, who was sworn in as Prime Minister of Greece Monday, has pledged to reverse austerity and reform measures and push for a new write-off of part of the Greek sovereign debt.

Investors were somewhat reluctant to make big moves amid a blizzard bearing down on the New York City area from later Monday through Tuesday night, which is believed to be one of the worst storms in the city's history.

Traders will also keep a close eye on the Federal Reserve's two- day policy meeting starting Tuesday for any clues on the timing of its interest rate hike.

The energy sector was the best performer of the S&P 500's 10 sectors Monday, with Chevron Corporation shares rising 1.90 percent to 108.88 dollars apiece.

According to Thomson Reuters, of the 90 companies in the S&P 500 that had reported earnings as of Friday for the fourth quarter of 2014, 72 percent had reported earnings above market expectations. This is above the long-term average of 63 percent and is above the average over the past four quarters of 69 percent.

Meanwhile, 54 percent of the companies had reported fourth- quarter revenue above market expectations.

U.S. stocks closed mixed Friday after a four-session winning streak, but the three benchmark indices still capped last week with gains, boosted by the European Central Bank's stimulus plans. Endite